This month has been really lovely so far. I am pretty busy with my classes, and have a lot of school work and communication to keep up with. Now that midterms are over, I am happy to have some time to relax and get a head start on studying for the second round of midterms.

Yesterday, I baked chocolate chip banana squares. Since there were five ripe bananas calling my name, I settled on this recipe, which featured five bananas. I adjusted the amounts of flour and added some oats. They turned out AMAZING – I ate two this morning for breakfast after scrambled eggs and veggies. These banana chocolate chip squares are really tender, and satisfy my sweet tooth without being too sweet. I hope you give the recipe a shot!

Place bananas, honey, butter, eggs, and vanilla in a blender. Blend completely and pour into large bowl.

Mix in dry ingredients and chocolate chips.

Bake 30 minutes, until a knife comes out clean.

Cool completely. Cut into 16 squares.

When I found myself with an extra baked sweet potato, I took off the skin and pureed it, then used it in this great recipe for sweet potato baked oats. They turned out fantastic, and had so much flavour. I’m having fun modifying this base recipe (1.3 cups oats, 1 cup liquid) to try different things. I recently tried this with pumpkin puree instead of sweet potato puree, and steeped the almond milk in chai tea leaves for a great pumpkin-chai fall baked oatmeal.

Healthy Sweet Potato Baked Oatmeal

4 servings

1 and 1/3 cups quick oats

1 heaping tsp cinnamon

scant 1/4 tsp salt

2/3 cup sweet potato puree (1 medium sweet potato)

1 tbsp chia seeds

3/4 tsp baking powder

1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk

1 tbsp melted butter (optional)

1 large egg

1/2 tsp vanilla

Mix all and bake in 8×8 pan for 25 mins at 350 degrees.

One final baking adventure – I had lots of leftover carrots from making Thai green curry, and thought it would be really nice to bake them up into squares. These turned out great – just sweet enough, and loaded with fall flavour. They froze very well.

Apple-Carrot Squares

Ingredients:

1/3 cup almond meal

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup buckwheat flour

1 cup quick oats

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 heaping teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1/3 cup honey

3 single-serve containers of unsweetened applesauce

3 shredded carrots

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Whisk all wet ingredients.

Whisk all dry ingredients in a separate bowl.

Whisk wet mixture into dry mixture.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Smooth the top. Bake the loaf for 45 to 50 minutes. Place the pan on a cooling rack, then let the bread cool in the pan. Gently turn the loaf out onto the rack to cool completely.

Store leftover pumpkin bread in an airtight container lined with paper towels for up to 4 days at room temperature or 7 days in the refrigerator. It can be frozen, wrapped tightly and placed in a ziptop bag, for up to 3 months.

Things from recently:

trying to get tickets to Corteo, which is coming to Toronto soon

shopping lists

choreography ideas

recipe for chocolate quinoa breakfast bowl, which I have yet to make

new Netflix show on figure skating

study schedules

ways to learn

Seline and I had lunch at Taco Farm one day, and I had a lovely plate of enchiladas with Mexican rice, arugula salad with pineapples, and sour cream. Seline enjoyed her brunch poutine – a lovely dish of chorizo, veggies, and a fried egg.

Afterwards, we spent some quiet study time at Seven Shores Cafe, where I had a great pumpkin spice chai latte and a vegan chocolate chip cranberry muffin. Seven Shores has the best creative baked goods, and I cannot wait to have their sunflower butter cookie. One day…

Another day, another brunch – here, Seline and I savoured meals at Sole. I had the vegetable crepe, which was loaded with spinach, kale, mushrooms, and goat cheese, then topped with a vodka spaghetti sauce and zucchini/squash ribbons. The best part? Fresh pastries – banana bread and pumpkin seed muffins – before the meal. I love pastries as you can see.

Random things from here and there:

spaghetti squash with Thai green curried vegetables

Mom’s homemade cranberry chocolate cookies

drew some anatomical structures on Seline!

Seline and I LOVE Red House, a restaurant in Uptown Waterloo. Here, I had a beautiful turkey sandwich on potato chive bread (butternut squash aioli was to die for) and a bowl of caramelized onion and golden beet soup. For dessert, I enjoyed the deconstructed lemon meringue pie, which had white chocolate mousse, berry compute, sugar cookie – which I believe should’ve been puff pastry – and lemon curd. Seline had the truffled lamb spaghetti.

Snapshots from aerial silks recently.

Attending a fun conference at the University of Waterloo!

And bits and pieces of volunteering, the fall term with cooler weather, and school stuff. Plus EYE MAKEUP (?!) that my sister experimented on me, for my aerial silks showcase performance.

Things from my Notes on my computer.

And a couple tasty meals.

That’s all I have for ya – wish I could share something more exciting, but every day has just been school, home, school, home, etc. Have a lovely rest of the week!

Hello! Short post today, because I have a couple emails to write and some schoolwork to catch up on. It is really crazy how quickly my courses are progressing, now that I’m in a number of upper-level kinesiology courses. I’ve learned so much in the three-ish weeks of school that we’ve had so far.

AWESOME pic that one of my friends shared on FB. Credit to the artist; unfortunately I couldn’t find his or her name. I like this piece because it shows which animals the poses are named for. I particularly like the peacock and the locust.

Bubble tea at CoCo is on sale until the end of November, so I will have to make sure my sister and I get some!

Mom made Caprese salad at home in BC, because she bought some new balsamic vinegar. It looks so good! I love that combo of flavours.

Campus on a sunny afternoon

Images from Nutrition in Disguise, one of the research groups that I’m involved with

And more…

Seline and I had a meal at Symposium last Sunday. It was my first time at Symposium Cafe, but I’ve heard too many good things about their cake to miss out. I devoured the whole thick slice of SKY-HIGH CARROT CAKE, and Seline had the triple chocolate cake. After this lovely meal, I went to my friend’s house for a potluck.

Another day, Sal and I went to Red House. Red House is one of my favourite Waterloo spots. They have phenomenal salads, soups, pastas, and entrees. Their desserts are always seasonal, and really unique. This time, I had the butternut squash and coconut soup, followed by fried polenta cubes with a beet and goat cheese salad. For dessert, Seline and I shared two: apple crisp with sharp cheddar ice cream and a unique white chocolate cheesecake with Oreo crust and stewed strawberries and figs.

I had a midterm last week, and a few more coming up. A lot of studying needs to be done!

The Halloween showcase at Brass Butterflies aerial studio is coming up, and I have been procrastinating on practicing. I need to get back into working on improving my endurance.

A quick video from aerials:

And some pics that Seline helped me take for my Instagram. I made an Instagram for my job, because I’m working as a Waterloo Warriors Recreation Ambassador this term. So if you’re reading this, you can follow me too. 😉 _cindywei

Things that scare me but I’m doing them anyways this term:

research

starting a club

presenting in front of lecture halls of first-year students

aerial performance

skating competition

teaching a yoga class

Random meal from recently:

Seline’s steak with potatoes, sautéed green beans, and onions

Veggie bean chili with cheddar and fig goat cheese

Vegetable cheddar enchiladas with roasted delicata squash

Quiche with sautéed green beans

More randomness:

Saw this stunning image of rice paddies on Twitter (or Reddit?), and it made me think of the time that I took a bus from Kathmandu to Pokhara, riding past miles of rice paddies. Absolutely incredible, and even more so in person.

A bitmoji that Seline made for me. It’s now my Twitter pic. I’m really a loser, as you can see.

Seline and I went to Menchies the other day because we had a 2-for-1 discount coupon from the mail. My Menchies bowl included chocolate brownie, cheesecake pieces, peanut butter crisp, a malted chocolate ball, cereal, and more. I’m all about the toppings ^_^

Sometimes, between classes, I find Seline and we spend a few hours relaxing, “studying”, and chatting at an on-campus cafe. The other day, I was SO. TIRED. that I slept with my head right on the table.

Bring milk to a simmer. Cut open tea bags, and allow tea to simmer in the milk for 5 minutes. Strain out the tea leaves.

Mix all ingredients and pour into pan.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Chocolate Oat Bars

tasted good, but need to add more condensed milk and a splash of oil to the chocolate filling

more butter in the crumble

double the crumble next time!

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/3 cup fat-free sweetened condensed milk

1 cup all-purpose flour (will increase to 2 cups next time)

1/2 cup quick oats (will increase to 1 cup next time)

1/2 tsp baking powder (will increase to 1 tsp next time)

1/2 tsp baking soda (will increase to 1 tsp next time)

1/4 tsp salt (will increase to 1/2 tsp next time)

3/4 cup packed brown sugar (will increase to 1.5 cups next time)

1/4 cup oil (will increase to 1/2 cup next time)

1 tsp vanilla (will increase to 2 tsp next time)

1 egg (will increase to 2 eggs next time)

2 tbsp quick oats (will increase to 1/4 cup next time)

2 tbsp softened butter (will increase to 1/4 cup next time)

DIRECTIONS

Heat chocolate chips and milk in 1-quart heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth; set aside. Heat oven to 350°. Line a square pan with parchment paper.

Mix flour, oats, the baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl; set aside. Stir brown sugar, oil, vanilla and egg in medium bowl with fork until smooth; stir into flour mixture until blended. Reserve 1/2 cup dough in small bowl for topping.

Let cool overnight before cutting, or it will be too tender to hold form. Store cooled leftovers in a covered container for up to several days, though best when fresh. Slice and freeze for longer term storage.

Good afternoon! This week has been a good one, and since I’m back in school, busy. Good thing I like school.

Last night, I made applesauce baked oatmeal that I could bring with me to school as a yummy lunch. I like this recipe because it isn’t too sweet, but has great flavour from the applesauce, cinnamon, and vanilla. I ate this today during lecture, topped with Greek yogurt and PB2.

Applesauce Baked Oatmeal

Makes 4 servings

INGREDIENTS

2 cups quick oats

drizzle honey

1/2 cup applesauce

1 tsp baking powder

1.5 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 heaping tsp salt

1.5 cups milk

2 tbsp melted butter

1 large egg, beaten

1/3 cup chocolate chips (optional)

15 prunes, chopped (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350.

Grease pan – 8 x 10 up to 10 x 10 are perfect sizes.

Mix all ingredients and pour into pan.

Bake for 35 minutes.

Over the weekend, I went to the MaRS Discovery District in downtown Toronto, where I had fun reuniting with friends from universities across Ontario. I loved the challenges, mini competitions, jobs fair session, and inspiring talks.

With all of the University of Waterloo people!

(Photo credit: Giordano Ciampini)

Few things from recently:

Cute message from Mom

Incredible sunsets from our home on the 18th floor

Seline’s typical dinner: pan-fried chicken breast with Minute Rice

Yoga poses and skating poses that I think are so beautiful

Back to skating! I skated a few times last week, early morning. The sessions start at 7:00 and end at 8:30. Afterwards, I like to have a hot tea latte and do schoolwork while eating a snack. This time, I had pumpkin oat bread with yogurt and almond butter. Here is the recipe.

Healthy Pumpkin Oat Bars with Chocolate Chips

INGREDIENTS

1 1/3 cup quick oats

2/3 cup buckwheat flour

2/3 cup almond meal

1/3 cup all purpose flour

1.5 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 heaping tsp salt

1 cup pumpkin puree from a can

1/3 cup honey

1 egg

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce

1/2 cup chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Mix together all ingredients.

Bake 45 mins.

Serve!

I love skating so much, even though my jumps aren’t here any more. It just feels nice to be on the ice.

More things from recently:

Seline’s academic schedule for this term

Powerful tweets

University of Waterloo Warriors Recreation app menu

frsh, a vegan restaurant that just opened up at our school’s health building

More randy stuff.

A great recipe I made some changes to – they turned out firmer than I’d expected, still absolutely delicious when heated up and served with nut butter and/or yogurt. I love this recipe so much, and it doesn’t hurt that you only need ONE bowl.

Chocolate Banana Cake Squares {Vegan}

Serves: 1 9×9 pan

INGREDIENTS

2 very ripe bananas

1/4 CUP HONEY

½ cup applesauce

1/4 CUP WATER

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 TSP LIME JUICE

1 tsp baking soda

HEAPING ¼ tsp salt

Sprinkle cinnamon (optional)

¼ heaping cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 CUP ALL-PURPOSE, 1/2 CUP BUCKWHEAT, 1/4 CUP ALMOND MEAL

1/2 CUP CHOCOLATE CHIPS

INGREDIENTS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

LINE 9X9 PAN WITH PARCHMENT PAPER.

BLEND BANANAS WITH WATER AND APPLESAUCE IN A BLENDER. ADD OTHER WET INGREDIENTS AND MIX UNTIL THOROUGHLY COMBINED.

Stir in flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt just until combined.

MIX IN CHOCOLATE CHIPS.

Pour batter into prepared dish.

Bake for 35-37 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean.

Let cool, slice in 16 squares, and serve.

Another day last week, I made a massive batch of vegetable chili. This made a TON of tasty, healthy, hearty chili. I love serving chili with sweet potato (roasted) or rice cooked in chicken broth, and of course, freshly-grated cheddar. Fresh lime juice on top also makes a big difference.

Cindy’s Ultimate Pumpkin Veggie Chili

INGREDIENTS

1 tsp oil

1 chopped onion

5 small chopped carrots

minced garlic

1 stalk celery

1 chopped green bell pepper

1 chopped red bell pepper

1 chopped yellow bell pepper

1 carton mushrooms

28 oz can diced tomatoes, no salt

1 can pinto beans

1 can black beans

3/4 cup pumpkin puree

juice of a lime

toppings?

SPICES AND HERBS

2 tbsp chili powder

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp paprika

1 tsp salt

black pepper

cayenne

1/2 tsp cinnamon

garlic powder

3/4 tsp dried oregano

3/4 tsp dried basil

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat oil and saute all vegetables with chili powder. Add salt.

Stir in all other ingredients, except lime. Season with remaining spices. Stir in pumpkin.

Boil, then reduce heat to medium.

Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Stir in lime juice and serve.

Every Wednesday, Seline and I have a sister’s dinner out. This time, we went to Bauer Kitchen. The dessert sweet board was the highlight, including warm chocolate cake with chocolate fondue sauce and chocolate gelato, pear cheesecake, creme brûlée with blueberries, and carrot cake with pistachio sauce. I liked all of it and had no problem eating it all by myself because Seline doesn’t like dessert. 🙂

Couple of aerials things! I played around on the hoop for the first time in a very long time yesterday.

lovely soft serve from Soft Peaks, which recently opened near my grandparents’ apartment in Burnaby

taro and chicken stew with fried egg and zucchini

My grandma found these! I wrote them when I was in the tenth grade, about five years ago. This is when I wrote down everything that I ate, separating them into pages by meal (breakfast, lunch, dinner). I think it’s funny because I also RANKED all of the things I ate out of 10, then calculated the weekly and monthly averages.

Heirloom Vegetarian is a lovely brunch spot in Vancouver. I went with my family, and I enjoyed a great platter of mushroom hash topped with poached egg and tofu. Mom and I shared two dishes – the other one was a grilled cheese with cauliflower soup. Afterwards, Mom, Dad, and I (sans Seline) shared a tray of four ice creams from Rain or Shine. They were Salted Caramel, Vanilla, Malted Chocolate Honeycomb, Peanut Butter.

Another afternoon, Seline and I had high tea with our good friend Adele. It was my first time having high tea, and it was such an enjoyable experience. The place was beautiful, the food was divine, and the company was great.

I had two large mugs of London Fog, which Seline drizzled with honey. I ate the vegetarian Grande Adventure, and my favourite savoury bite was the cheese sandwich with apple relish, followed by a tiny sandwich filled with curried egg salad.

That same evening, we packed up the car and drove to Aunt Mimi’s home. We went to Mimi’s house because she lives closer to the airport, and she was the one giving us a ride to the airport the next day. This time, Dad, Seline, Grandpa, and I ALL went to Waterloo together.

Our first meal in Waterloo was Famoso Pizzeria. I had my favourite, which had arugula, gorgonzola, dates, honey, brussels sprouts, and proscuitto. On the side, a Caprese salad.

For the first few nights, we stayed at a lovely AirBnB in Kitchener. The highlight was playing a board game called Blokus.

Another day, we dined at Red House. Seline had lamb spaghetti, and I thoroughly enjoyed my summery salad and plantains with queso fresco. For dessert, I had the chocolate tart with whipped ricotta and berries. We did an escape room after this dinner – it was called the Vault. Unfortunately, we didn’t escape in time.

Around this time, we got to see the new house. The house was already furnished for one person.

We went to the MUSEUM in Kitchener one day, and Seline and I played with this interactive virtual dancing thing.

Fun moments – delicious dinner of baked cheesy tortellini with veggies from Ennio’s, followed by an incredible dark rum and mascarpone bread pudding with ice cream and Nutella sauce.

Plus cleaning and sleeping on the ground. Which are not fun.

More cleaning, more furniture to construct, and a random waffle topped with whipped peanut butter, honey-roasted granola, and peaches.

Seline and I had a bit more cleaning to do, and we were all done with the apartment. Here it is:

We finished cleaning, had an EXCELLENT first day of school (with yummy lunch eaten in the sun), and I celebrated with a giant chocolate chip cookie. I actually got this massive chewy cookie from Proof Kitchen for free as part of my lunch (how sweet is that deal?!), and it was delicious after popping it into the microwave for about 35 secs. Chewy, crisp around the edges, buttery, and exploding with chocolate. Served with a glass of milk.

In September, I will be entering my fourth year of a five-year Kinesiology program at the University of Waterloo. In other words, I’m 80% done university. You might be tempted to ask me what I am planning to do after I graduate, and I am asking myself the same question. There is so much I want to do, and I feel daunted by the idea that my next few choices could butterfly into massive differences for my future.

I find myself bouncing back and forth between “I want to go to medical school” and “I’m afraid of the work-life balance that med school entails”. Cheesy but true – I’ve always loved science and helping people, so the idea of med school has appealed to me since I was little.

Now, however, as my friends apply for (and are accepted into!) med school, I’m questioning whether or not it is the best option for me. I have the entire Kaplan set of med school preparation books, so I can study for the entrance exam, the MCAT. In fact, I’ve sat through the 8-hour mock MCAT. But the issue is that I like to cook my own healthy meals. I like to sit down for my meals, uninterrupted, and fully enjoy my food. I like to get enough exercise every day, and to sleep at least seven hours a night. Will med school interfere with that? If it doesn’t, how about residency? I’m also having some doubts about med school because it is a major financial commitment, and I’m worried that I will dislike it or change my mind once it’s too late.

Aside from med school, there is a number of other careers that I am looking into. I’m curious about them and would like to know more, or even better, to dip my toes into these occupations before I make any major decisions.

In no particular order:

Travel Doctor: I can see myself being a travel doctor because I love learning about tropical diseases, especially those known as “neglected tropical infectious diseases”. I think it would be great to meet patients who are planning to go to other countries, and tell them which vaccines they need, and which precautions they should take before their trip. The problem is that I don’t know how to become a travel doctor. Do they specialize in med school? I looked at a Canadian list of specialties and there is nothing about specializing in emporiatrics (travel medicine). I think I might have to do a Masters in Tropical Diseases or International Health before med school, but I’m not sure. I wonder if it would be a “waste” to do a Masters before med school. There are some great Masters programs in London, England, which relate to public health and tropical medicine. I looked into the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, both of which offer world-famous Masters programs in this field. Even Oxford has a cool program on tropical med and international healthcare. But my question is – do I have to do a Masters to become a travel doctor? Or just go to med school? Do med schools allow people to specialize in this? Or, more broadly, what is the “education pathway” to becoming a travel doctor?

Sports Medicine Physician for Artist-Athletes: By “artist-athletes”, I’m referring to people who perform in artistic or aesthetic sports. For example, divers, gymnasts, figure skaters, circus artists, dancers, theatre performers, and cheerleaders. There are many more, but I like this field because I think it is more interesting than working with the general population and seeing a lot of people with low back pain.

University Professor: I worked as a tutor at Centennial College, a Scarborough nursing school, from September 2017 to December 2017. I have always enjoyed tutoring and teaching people. During that time, I realized that I LOVED teaching anatomy and physiology, especially human physiology. I had an excellent time working with dedicated student nurses and helping them with foundational biology. I think being a teacher or professor would suit my personality, because I love talking, teaching, and sharing my knowledge in the form of presentations. I think professors can make a big difference in their students’ lives, as much as a doctor would make a difference in his or her patients’ lives. If I became a professor, I think I would teach human physiology or biology.

Dermatologist, Endocrinologist, Ophthalmologist: If I go to med school and have the opportunity to specialize, I would choose one of these. I’ve heard that dermatology, especially now, is incredibly competitive. One of my friends in BC just started med school with the goal of becoming an ophthalmologist, which I think is cool. I can’t really spell that word, though. For endocrinology, I think it’s interesting because it’s like a puzzle. I learned a lot about hormones in school and when I was working as a tutor, plus I see an endocrinologist for some hormone queries, and I find it a fascinating field. I cannot see myself becoming a surgeon or anything too “intense”.

Physiotherapist for Artist-Athletes: I don’t really want to be a physiotherapist because (a) I learned, when I worked at the Toronto Health Centre, that physiotherapists are quite low on the “medical hierarchy”, and (b) physiotherapy school is now even more competitive and selective than medical school. In my opinion, if I am going to go to an expensive school, compete with thousands of intelligent, hardworking students, why would I do physio school instead of med school? On the other hand, though, there is no MCAT or entrance exam (that I know of). I think being a physiotherapist would help me learn so much about the body and accelerate my training in aerials. That would be a great benefit.

Optometrist: The University of Waterloo is associated with an optometry school, and in fact, many of my courses take place in the Optometry building (or, as my friends and I call it, ‘optom’). In my mind, optometry would allow for a good work-life balance. Someone once told me that I should go into dentistry instead of med school because it pays well, but is “cleaner” and “easier” than med school, but I would certainly prefer optometry to dentistry. I don’t know that much about optometry school. I’m not sure if it is a long program, if it’s clinic-based, or mostly theory-based. I am also curious about their scope of practice and pay in Canada.

In summary… I don’t know. I’m a confused twenty year-old who is probably having a quarter-life crisis right now, but I’m glad I wrote everything out. This will probably be a funny read in another ten or twenty years.

A Bitmoji that Seline made… of me! Wearing my usual white t-shirt, black shorts, and thinking about cake and tea.

The other day, I made the tastiest snack – a thick slice of toast topped with peanut butter, caramelized nut chocolate bark, and blackberries. This was such a great snack.

Breakfast from the farmer’s market: focaccia topped with pecans and maple syrup. It’s the best yeast bread I’ve ever eaten.

More of the same stuff – toast, PB, banana, and a side of yogurt with blackberries and chocolate caramelized nut bark. Really delicious.

Dinner from Merchantman Restaurant – Seline and I enjoyed a great meal with steak and Caesar salad, with seafood linguine and sticky date pudding. I ate the entire sticky date pudding with vanilla ice cream, all by myself. It was so memorable and tasty.

I think Seline is allergic to spices?! We ate at Himalayan Cuisine, where she had the butter chicken and I ate spinach palak paneer. We shared rice and naan. Interestingly, her throat felt itchy, swollen, and there were likely no NUTS or KIWI (her normal allergens) in the food.

For dessert, I had a mug of chai and some gulab jamun. Gulab jamun, according to Wikipedia, is a “milk-solid-based South Asian sweet, originating in the Indian subcontinent, notably popular in India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, as well as Myanmar.”

Another day, we played board games at Small Print Board Game Cafe (we like HIVE and WORD ON THE STREET), and had dinner at Water and Prince lobster pound. I ate a lobster roll with potato salad, and Seline had a bowl of clam chowder. I also had a cup of clam chowder, and I ate both of our biscuits. For dessert, chocolate torte cheesecake. ❤

On Saturday, we watched the Young Company dance show and ate at La Sazon de Mexico. I had the green enchiladas with vegetables, rice, and refried beans. Seline ate the cheesy chicken quesadilla.

After lunch, we had Chatime bubble tea and walked around the park. We saw Victoria Park and walked into Dead Man’s Pond, a small pond rumored to be bottomless, with spooky legends surrounding its name & spotted salamanders. Interesting tale:

Apparently, Dead Man’s Pond is the gate way to the residing place of a great, but vengeful, Indian Spirit. Sometimes, the spirit would take offense at those who invaded the solitude of his pond. Rising from the deep, he would grasp all who swam in the water or even wondered close to the shore. Pulling them down to where the denizen so the deep lurked in waiting, he would steal their very souls, before spewing the body back up to act as a warning to others to stay far from the shores of the pond.

A second version deals with treasure. Seekers had determined that pirates put into shore just at the point of land that is Victoria Park, and buried their riches in the woods. Years later the site was founded, and treasure hunters began to dig a huge hole in hopes of finding the chest of gold. When they got down so deep the sky was just a pinprick above them, the side of their hole suddenly burst and water poured in the Gulf. Storytellers state that this was the curse of the pirates working to protect the treasure.

There is another version which may be a little more believable. In the early days of settlement on the Island, the Governor threw a gala New Year’s Eve ball. A woodcutter, a poor, but honest and trustworthy man, loaded his sleigh with the best burning wood and drove it to the Governor’s house to ensure the warmth for the revelers. The Governor, grateful for the thoughtfulness of the woodcutter, gave him an extra stipend of gold as an award. Unfortunately, he was murdered and robbed for this gold and his body was thrown in Dead Man’s Pond.

Dinnertime! Seline and I ate at the Lucy Maud Culinary Institute of Holland College, where we had an amuse-bouche to start. There was a sliver of scallop, cilantro, and proscuitto.

Then, we nibbled on plenty of fresh focaccia with cultured butter. For our entrees, Seline had the chicken stuffed with spinach, and potato gratin. I ate the brown butter hollandaise arctic char with crushed hazelnuts. Both entrees were superb.

For dessert, we shared the glazed chocolate cake with ice cream, coffee soil, meringue, and toffee, and a fresh strawberry shortcake.

The next day, we went up north to Rustico. For lunch, we ate at a beachside eatery called Blue Mussel Cafe, where Seline had a haddock “burger” (really, a sandwich), with roasted potatoes on the side.

I ate the creamy bubbly seafood bake – a delightful bowl of seafood tossed in a decadent butter sauce and smothered in cheese. A fresh farmer’s salad on the side, with candied pecans and beets.

For dessert, I kind of wanted the peanut butter ice cream cake, but I’m so glad I ended up choosing the chocolate potato cake. It was served warm with ice cream and whipped cream – this was so delicious.

Few more things…

And other lunches that I’ve eaten at work. Toast with PB and banana, along with yogurt, fruit, and trail mix, are my go-to’s. Another day, I ate a lobster quiche with microwaved sautéed veggies.